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An Intelligent Democrat . . .
The Weekly Standard ^
| From the December 15, 2003 issue
| by Stephen F. Hayes
Posted on 12/06/2003 8:08:04 PM PST by .cnI redruM
A LEADING DEMOCRAT on the Senate Intelligence Committee has reiterated his support for the war in Iraq and encouraged the Bush administration to be more aggressive in its preemptive measures to protect Americans. Evan Bayh, a Democrat from Indiana and a leader of moderates in the Senate, responded to questions last week on the war in Iraq and a memo detailing links between Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden sent to the committee in late October by Undersecretary of Defense Douglas J. Feith and later excerpted in these pages.
"Even if there's only a 10 percent chance that Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden would cooperate, the question is whether that's an acceptable level of risk," Bayh told me. "My answer to that would be an unequivocal 'no.' We need to be much more pro-active on eliminating threats before they're imminent."
Asked about the growing evidence of a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda, Bayh said: "The relationship seemed to have its roots in mutual exploitation. Saddam Hussein used terrorism for his own ends, and Osama bin Laden used a nation-state for the things that only a nation-state can provide. Some of the intelligence is strong, and some of it is murky. But that's the nature of intelligence on a relationship like this--lots of it is going to be speculation and conjecture. Following 9/11, we await certainty at our peril."
(Excerpt) Read more at weeklystandard.com ...
TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; US: Indiana
KEYWORDS: bayh; evanbayh; intelcommittee; senate; stephenfhayes
There are still Democrats I'd be willing to listen to if they could get the nomination. It's a shame the Dems are bent on sending us such mediocrities. I'd enjoy Bayh vs. Bush and would listen to it with an open mind...
To: .cnI redruM
BTW - I excerpted due to the article's length.
2
posted on
12/06/2003 8:08:32 PM PST
by
.cnI redruM
( l = w + w. Two wrongs equal a left.)
To: remember; Perlstein; LS
Bayh gets it...
3
posted on
12/06/2003 8:11:10 PM PST
by
Southack
(Media bias means that Castro won't be punished for Cuban war crimes against Black Angolans in Africa)
To: .cnI redruM
.
To: .cnI redruM
He sees the writing on the wall.
He should be credited for being intelligent enough to move off the tracks when a train is coming. For this the Dems will punish him after bloody November.
5
posted on
12/06/2003 8:12:38 PM PST
by
Bogey78O
(Rob Reiner is a tubby fascist!)
To: Southack
And there's not a chance in hell the Dims would nominate him.
6
posted on
12/06/2003 8:13:30 PM PST
by
labard1
To: .cnI redruM
Does Bayh know he's in the wrong party?
7
posted on
12/06/2003 8:13:31 PM PST
by
doug from upland
(Hillary would get 100% of the Islamist Terrorist vote)
To: .cnI redruM
Bayh definitely "gets it". I always see him as a rational, thinking American. With a little more seasoning, he could be the next Zell Miller type voice. I could even see him switching parties if the frustration level gets too high for him.
Lando
8
posted on
12/06/2003 8:16:13 PM PST
by
Lando Lincoln
(I'm thinkin', I'm thinkin'....)
To: .cnI redruM
Evan Bayh, a Democrat from Indiana and a leader of moderates in the Senate,This "leader of moderates in the Senate" has a lifetime ACU rating of 21. He's a liberal and he's a scumbag.
To: Lando Lincoln
Bayh, Miller and a few others definitely "get it". Unfortunately, they have been sidelined and are almost considered black sheep by their own party. Luckily, there are a few that aren't total off the deep end. . . .
10
posted on
12/06/2003 8:21:31 PM PST
by
zencat
To: Lancey Howard
He's on the right side of THIS issue.
11
posted on
12/06/2003 8:59:10 PM PST
by
RobbyS
(XP)
To: .cnI redruM
It's going to be an interesting 2008 Dem primary w/ Bayh running against Hillary. If Bayh won, it would make it tougher for the eventual 2008 GOP candidate.
12
posted on
12/06/2003 9:05:36 PM PST
by
Gothmog
To: .cnI redruM
OMG .. catch me .. I'm falling ........!!
Please .. tell me I read this correctly ..??
13
posted on
12/06/2003 9:42:41 PM PST
by
CyberAnt
(America .. the LIGHT of the World)
To: Southack
Bayh and Zell Miller! A party of 2.
14
posted on
12/06/2003 9:44:10 PM PST
by
CyberAnt
(America .. the LIGHT of the World)
To: .cnI redruM
I agree with you. Bayh and Miller appear to be "stand up guys". It is so easy to demonize one side or the other, and ignore what is said. But sometimes, I find myself pleasantly surprised to hear that the "other side" actually has a vision for America, instead of partisan hatred.
15
posted on
12/06/2003 9:52:45 PM PST
by
Pan_Yans Wife
("Your joy is your sorrow unmasked." --- GIBRAN)
To: doug from upland
When it comes to Judicial nominees, Bayh is definitely a Democrat. At least he is a reasonable voice in the Senate when it comes to issues like this one.
16
posted on
12/06/2003 9:53:04 PM PST
by
arasina
(I can't believe I said that.)
To: CyberAnt
Party of three--Bayh, Miller, and John Breaux of LA
vaudine
17
posted on
12/06/2003 10:05:03 PM PST
by
vaudine
To: .cnI redruM
"Even if there's only a 10 percent chance that Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden would cooperate . ." About the same chance, in general, that Democrats and the Bush Administration would cooperate, it would seem.
To: .cnI redruM
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Bayh a Democrat on the same Senate Intelligence committee that circulated memos about misappropriating the committee to string along the Republican leadership until they decided it was time to do a fishing expedition to undermine Bush?
To: .cnI redruM; Indie
That's the nature of intelligence on a relationship like this--lots of it is going to be speculation and conjecture. Following 9/11, we await certainty at our peril."
--- Evan Bayh, Senate Intelligence Committee This one stays in my list of all time good quotes. Thanks for the post.
20
posted on
12/07/2003 4:50:40 AM PST
by
Indie
(We were warned. My people perish for lack of knowledge.)
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